Automated banking machines are well known. A common type of automated banking machine used by consumers is an automated teller machine (“ATM”). ATMs enable customers to carry out banking transactions. Common banking transactions that may be carried out with ATMs include the dispensing of cash, the making of deposits, the transfer of funds between accounts, the payment of bills and account balance inquiries. The types of banking transactions a customer can carry out are determined by capabilities of the particular banking machine and the programming of the institution operating the machine. Other types of automated banking machines may allow customers to charge against accounts or to transfer funds. Other types of automated banking machines may print or dispense items of value such as coupons, tickets, wagering slips, vouchers, checks, food stamps, money orders, scrip or traveler's checks. For purposes of this disclosure an ATM, an automated banking machine, or an automated transaction machine shall encompass any device which carries out transactions including transfers of value.
Many ATMs are configured to require consumers to enter a Personal Identification Number (PIN) with a keypad of the ATM prior to being granted permission to perform transaction functions with the ATM. The PIN is communicated to a host system by the ATM for purposes of authenticating the identity of the consumer. To prevent the PIN from being stolen by an unauthorized party, ATMs are operative to encrypt the PIN prior to sending the PIN to a host system. For many years Single-DES encryption has been used by ATMs to encrypt PINs using an 8 byte Communication (COM) secret key. Unfortunately, as the cost of computer processing power decreases over time, the risk of the encryption being cracked by unauthorized individuals or entities is increasing. Consequently, there exists a need for new and existing ATMs to include support for a more secure encryption protocol.
PIN information may be encrypted using a COM key known to both the ATM and the host system. The COM key may be securely sent to the ATM from the host system by encrypting the COM key with a terminal master key known to both the ATM and the host system. To maintain the secrecy of a terminal master key, when an ATM is being initially configured for operation, the initial terminal master key is often required to be manually installed by a two-person team at the ATM. Each person of the team has knowledge of only a portion of the information necessary to generate the initial terminal master key. To install the terminal master key successfully, each person must input into the ATM his or her known portion of the terminal master key. Once installed, the inputted portions undergo a mathematical procedure that results in a sixteen (16) character key unknown to either person.
In general, financial institutions or other entities which operate ATMs, are responsible for inserting a unique initial terminal master key in their ATMs. Such entities are also responsible for periodically updating the COM key used for PIN encryption. Although the use of two-person teams to install the initial terminal master key increases the security of the system, in general such a protocol increases the maintenance costs per ATM and is generally cumbersome to manage. As a result, existing keys on ATMs are often not updated on a regular basis, which increases their vulnerability to being cracked. Consequently, there exists a need for a new system and method of installing the initial terminal master key which is less costly and less cumbersome to perform. There is a further need for a new system and method of installing a terminal master key on an ATM which is equally or more secure than a two-person team system.